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Catcalls [es] have long been considered a way to flirt par excellence; things that men say to women to get their attention and compliment them. But there is an ongoing discussion about whether catcalls are really a type of flirting, or an act of aggression.

Many artists and web users have shared photos and illustrations to report street harassment and demand respect for women.

Chilean illustrator Marcelo Pérez [es] shared one of his pieces in which a woman describes her feelings against the so-called “compliments” that she hears on the street.

Illustration by Marcelo Perez, reproduced with his permission.

In the first image, the illustration's protagonist says: “This isn't a compliment, it's a drooling moron who hasn't seen a woman all year.” In the second image, she says: “This is a grab, a twisted kind of sucker punch.” In the third panel, she says: “This is a criminal screaming vulgarities (which are neither flattering nor seductive) on a public street.” Finally, she says: “This is the fixed and creepy stare of an unblinking psychopath.”

From Argentina, Global Voices author Jorge Gobbi [es] shared a photo from his Flickr account featuring an iconic phrase from the women's movements in this region of the world: “I don't want your compliments, I want your respect.”

-Man: You chicks are hysterical, how could you not love being catcalled?

-Yes. It's true, how have I not thought of that? I love being harassed on the street. I feel disgustingly complimented! I love when some random guy I don't know and I don't like looks at my tits just because I'm a woman. It's an honor to be insulted that way! I love that twisted and perverted type of admiration!

-Man: Yeah, okay, I get it.

Finally, Facebook features a number of initiatives to challenge catcalling as a form of complimenting a woman and categorize them as a type of harassment: